Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to tackle the backlog in court cases that involve juvenile defendants.

Throughout the pandemic, youth cases have continued to be prioritised and regularly reviewed to ensure they are being listed as expeditiously as possible, especially cases that involve youths in custody and those where a child is almost 18. The listing of cases is a judicial function and judges continue to work to prioritise cases involving vulnerable complainants and witnesses.

The Government is committed to supporting the recovery of the courts. We have extended 30 Nightingale courtrooms beyond the end of March 2022 and we removed the limit on the number of days the Crown Court can sit in the 2021/22 financial year. To secure enough capacity to sit at the required levels in 2022/23 and beyond we are expanding our plans for judicial recruitment.

To provide additional capacity in the Crown Court we are extending magistrates’ court sentencing powers from 6 to 12 months’ imprisonment for a single Triable Either Way offence to allow more cases to be heard in the magistrates’ court and help to drive down the backlog of cases over the coming years.

These measures are already working, and as a result we expect to get through 20% more Crown Court cases this financial year than we did pre-Covid. Following an increase in funding as part of the Ministry of Justice’s Spending Review settlement, including £477m for recovery in the criminal courts, we aim to reduce the number of outstanding cases in the Crown Court to 53,000 by March 2025. This will help all court users including those involved in cases with juvenile defendants.